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Disappearing Diaspora in
Uzbekistan;
The Uyghurs
Azerbaijan
by N.T.Tarimi
Recently, bad news for Uyghurs came from the heartland
of Central Eurasia. The Uzbek authorities agreed to
Chinese demands to further clamp down on any activity
of Uyghurs in Uzbekistan that has a flavor of
supporting and advocating human rights and greater
political as well as cultural rights for the Uyghurs
in East Turkistan (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region).
On June 15, 2004, Chinese President Hu Jintao visited
Uzbekistan to take part in the summit of the Shanghai
Cooperation Organization, which is scheduled to begin
on June 16 in Tashkent. During the visit, Hu and his
Uzbek counterpart Islam Karimov signed a joint
statement on further developing a partnership of
friendly cooperation between their two countries.
According to the joint statement, “China and
Uzbekistan agreed that terrorism, separatism, and
extremism still pose a major threat to regional
security and stability. China and Uzbekistan will, in
accordance with Shanghai Cooperation Organization on
Combating Terrorism , Separatism and Extremism and the
China-Uzbekistan Agreement on Cooperation in Combating
Terrorism, Separatism, and Extremism, further
strengthen coordination and cooperation among relevant
agencies of both countries and continue to adopt
powerful measures to fight all forms of terrorism,
including terrorism waged buy the so-called \"East
Turkistan terror groups\" in order to engender peace
and tranquility in the two countries and in the region.
The two countries agreed that the crackdown on the \"terrorist
forces of East Turkistan\" is a major part of the
international anti-terrorism campaign “.
China also announced it would give Central Asian
countries US$900million in credits and gave Uzbekistan
about US$2.5 million in humanitarian assistance.
According to Uyghur intellectuals in Uzbekistan, Uzbek
authorities will strengthen their control over any
activities of Uyghurs in Uzbekistan and other Central
Asian republics. New Sino-Uzbek cooperation against
the Uyghur movement for independence and democracy
will cast a dark shadow over the future of Uyghur
people.
Uzbekistan is one of the countries in Central Asia,
which has a large number of the Uyghur diaspora.
Uzbekistan’s stance on this matter is unique in
Central Asia. Although other Central Asian countries,
particularly Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, have also
curtailed and limited Uyghur movements of the same
character, they did allow Uyghurs to carry out some
activity within the boundary of their existing laws.
However, Uzbekistan has not given any chance for
Uyghurs to organize in support of their ethnic
brothers in East Turkistan.
Uzbekistan’s stance on this issue is not new. It is a
historical fact that the Ferghana Valley has been a
rear base for the Uygur national liberation movement
since the 19th century. Uzbek -Uyghur relations in the
fields of politics, economics, and culture has
affected Uygur liberation movements throughout history.
Well aware of these facts, Uzbek authorities, just
after the country’s independence, closely monitored
the Uyghur movements that were gaining momentum in its
territory. Fearing that Uyghur movements in Uzbekistan,
which are aimed at supporting the Uyghurs’ struggle
against the Chinese government, would negatively
affect Sino-Uzbek relations, the Uzbek government has
clamped down on the Uyghur movements since
independence.
The Uygurs of Uzbekistan have made significant
contributions to the development of social, economic,
and cultural life in Uzbekistan. Today, as citizens of
Uzbekistan, they are faithfully fulfilling their civic
duties and roles. However, the Uyghurs in Uzbekistan
are currently going through rough times. Just like
other people in Uzbekistan, their freedom of speech
and expression are severely curtailed by the current
Uzbek regime. Their freedom to carry out political and
human rights campaigns aimed at supporting the
political, social, and cultural rights of their ethnic
brethren in East Turkistan is particularly severely
restricted. Uyghurs thus feel the need of
democratization in Uzbekistan even stronger.
Following the intensification of economic and
political relations between Uzbekistan and China and
the entry of Uzbekistan into the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization, the Uyghurs’ problem has increasingly
come under the spotlight. The Uzbek government has
prohibited pro-Uygur and anti-Chinese messages in the
state and any other media outlets. According to some
Uyghurs in Uzbekistan, who asked not to be identified,
the Uyghur press in Uzbekistan has encountered severe
restrictions. The Uzbek press refuses to publish
papers, in which the political problems of the Uyghurs
are mentioned. Furthermore, the importing of books and
newspapers and any other publications concerning to
East Turkistan, which are published in Turkey, Germany
and other countries, is now prohibited. Hence, there
is no publishing house in Uzbekistan that publishes
literature in the Uyghur language. Only a short Uyghur
service is allowed on Uzbek Radio and is conducted
under strict control. Actually the Uyghur radio
service was created in 1947 and used as a tool for its
anti-China purposes. The current Uyghur radio service
is the continuation of that old service but operates
under a very different mandate. Anything about Uyghur
human rights issues or political problems in East
Turkistan is not allowed to be broadcast.
The restrictions on the Uyghur movement in Uzbekistan
came into force in 1994 after the visit of Chinese
premier Li Peng to the country and the signing of a
bilateral agreement between the two governments. Since
then, establishment of Uyghur organizations that
advocate human rights and independence for the people
in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region is prohibited.
Therefore, there are currently no Uyghur political
organizations in Uzbekistan. Only the Uyghur Cultural
Center is functioning as a non-political organization.
This is in sharp contrast to other Central Asian
Republics, specifically Kirghizstan and Kazakhstan,
where Uyghurs are allowed to organize into political
organizations. According to some Uyghur intellectuals
in Uzbekistan, who wanted to remain anonymous, Uygurs
are not even allowed to participate in conferences and
meetings about Uygur issues which are held in other
countries. The Uzbekistan government considers any
pro-Uyhgur activities in Uzbekistan or by Uzbek
citizens as harmful to Sino-Uzbek relations and Uzbek
national interests. After joining the Shanghai
Cooperation Organization, the Uzbek government quickly
responded to the call of Chinese government to crack
down on terrorism, ethnic separatism and religious
fundamentalism. By actively supporting China’s
crackdown on Uyghur independence movements, Uzbekistan
wanted to get China’s help in its own fight against
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.
As a people united by its national origin, history,
culture and tradition, Uyghurs have a relatively long
history in Uzbekistan. From the second half of
eighteenth century they began migrating to the land
which is now called Uzbekistan. The majority of
immigration took place in the following three
different periods. The first period was between
1759-1911. This is the period in which Uygurs
periodically revolted against Manchu rulers. In this
period, many Uyghurs migrated to the Ferghana Valley
to escape Manchu-Chinese persecution. The second
period is from the beginning of 20th century to 1937.
During this period, many Uyghurs came to Uzbekistan in
search of a better life. The third period is between
1955 and 1962. In this period, many Uygurs who were
against the deal reached between their leaders and
Chinese Communist government and who were skeptical of
Chinese communist rule in East Turkistan (Xinjiang)
moved to Uzbekistan.
The exact number of Uygur population in Central Asia
has been a very contentious issue. In the 1920s,
Abdulla Rozibakiyev, one of the Uyghur leaders of that
time, asserted that the Uyghur population in Soviet
Central Asia was 600,000, the majority of which was
living in Uzbekistan. According to official Soviet
demographic information in 1930s, there were about
300,000 Uyghurs living in the Soviet Union at that
time. In 1937, during the Stalin’s campaign of purging
\"counter-revolutionaries\" across the Soviet Union,
many Uyghurs were forced to change their ethnic
affiliation. There is no precise information
concerning the number of Uyghurs living in Uzbekistan
during the period 1950-60. Soviet official statistics
in 1979 put the Uyghur population at 29,104 and
official statistics in 1989 put that number at 35,700.
Today, there is no official data on the number of
Uyghurs in Uzbekistan, however, Uygur intellectuals in
Uzbekistan assert that a great number of Uyghurs live
in Uzbekistan. One member of the Uygur Cultural Center
of Uzbekistan said that approximately 200,000 Uygurs
live in Uzbekistan. And according to a Uyghur
professor of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, who
did not to be named, there are approximately 500,000
Uyghurs currently living in Uzbekistan.
In the beginning of 20th century, Uyghurs in
Uzbekistan enjoyed a brief renaissance in art and
literature. The cities of Tashkent and Andijan became
the main centers of Uygur culture. The first Uyghur
language newspaper \"Kembigheller Avazi\"(the Voice of
Poor) was published in these two cities in 1921. The
first Uyghur novel written by Momen Hamraev
(1907-1955) was published in Tashkent in 1930.
Following in the footsteps of Hamraev, other Uyghur
novelists such as Nur Israilova(1910-1953), Abdulla
Muhammadi(1901-1937) and Omar Muhammadi (1906-1931),
published outstanding works of Uyghur literature. A
new genre of free verse in Uygur poetry was introduced
by Uyghur poets such as Hezim Iskandarov (1906-1970)
and Hebib Zakiri(?-1937) during this period. The State
Uyghur Theater of Uzbekistan was created in Andijan in
1930 and soon the motion picture industry was also
created with the participation of Uyghur actors. A
series of drama performances were presented in the
theater. Also Uyghur technical schools were
established in Andijan in 1930.
However, the Uyghur cultural renaissance in Uzbekistan
did not last long. In 1937-1938, during Stalin`s
campaign of purges, Uyghur cultural centers and
activities became targets for persecution. In this
campaign, a great number of Uyghur scholars were
arrested and executed, Uyghur cultural centers,
theaters, newspapers and schools in Tashkent and
Andijan were closed. Uyghur cultural organizations
were moved to Kazakhstan.
However, following the Sino-Soviet break in the 1960s,
the Soviet government restored Uygur cultural centers
in Uzbekistan. Tashkent became a center of
anti-Chinese propaganda that targeted the Uyghur
population in Xinjiang. Uygur theaters, radio stations
and other centers in Tashkent became very active. The
Uyghur radio service in Tashkent broadcast two hours
exclusively for the audience in Xinjiang. The Soviet
government launched Uyghur study programs in the
Institute of Oriental Studies of State Academy and
Tashkent State University. All this had a profound
impact on the Uyghurs’ independence sentiment in
Xinjiang. As mentioned earlier, all of the Uyghur
activity in Uzbekistan came to an end following the
collapse of Soviet Union.
Today, the Uyghurs are recognized as an ethnic
minority in the Republic of Uzbekistan. However, their
right to establish cultural and political
organizations was severely restricted and vehemently
opposed by the Uzbek government. Uyghurs in Uzbekistan
are not allowed to form or join political
organizations that advocate independence for Xinjiang.
Uyghurs are even restricted from attending political
activities in other countries, which is related the
East Turkistan. As a result, there are no Uyghur
political or social organizations in Uzbekistan which
advocate and support human rights and greater
political and cultural rights for Uygurs in East
Turkistan. The Uyghur movement in Uzbekistan is in a
stage of hibernation.
After September 11, Uzbekistan became an important
ally in American’s war on terror. The Uzbek government
provided military bases for American’s war in
Afghanistan. Since then, US-Uzbek relations in the
spheres of politics, economics, and military
cooperation have grown significantly. Relations with
the United States have become one of the cornerstones
of Uzbekistan’s foreign policy. Unlike other Central
Asian countries, Uzbekistan previously refused to
participate in any regional organizations, except for
the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, led by Russia.
The international community hoped that closer US-Uzbek
relations would help change the autocratic character
of the Uzbek regime and make it more democratic and
respectful of human rights. However, two years later
nothing has changed in the Uzbek regime’s treatment of
its dissidents and in its human rights records.
After September 11, China is using its economic power
to strengthen cooperation with Central Asian countries
and crack down on Uyghur political activities in the
region, under the false cover of fighting terrorism,
separatism, and extremism.
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